View India vs Pakistan match data is just one match that will make the IOC want to include cricket in the Olympics. Photo: Reuters/Francis Mascarenhas
If you want to know why cricket became an Olympic sport, the answer was revealed on Saturday in Ahmedabad at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
The match between India and Pakistan provided compelling reasons why cricket will be included in the Los Angeles Games in 2028, where there will be around 100,000 fans in the stadium and no doubt a huge television audience. When both teams played at the last World Cup in England, it was watched by 273 million people. Given the digital explosion since then, especially in India, we can expect Saturday's game to be watched by a wider audience.
With numbers like these and plans to expand the Olympic movement into new territories, you can suddenly see why it needs cricket. In fact, the Olympics needs cricket more than cricket needs the Olympics. Or, more importantly, the International Olympic Committee needs the wealth of broadcasting that cricket can open up in Asia. Rights for the 2028 Games in Asia alone are estimated to be worth around £220 million thanks to the Indian cricket team's bid for gold. For the Olympic movement this does not pose any difficulty from a financial point of view.
More than 100,000 fans came to watch the India vs Pakistan cricket match. World Cup match on Saturday. Photo: Getty Images/Surjit Yadav
What does this mean for cricket? Yes, it will increase funding for some associated countries, allowing them to use public funds for Olympic sports. The biggest rise will be in the women's game, where progress to the top is faster than in the men's game. But a fairer funding model through cricket's own global events would achieve both of these goals, since the sport is flush with money — it just fills the same pockets.
The idea that a spot at the Olympics games suddenly allowing countries that don't yet play cricket, such as China, to become a force in the game is a pipe dream. This will take decades. The Olympics will be good for cricket as it will provide it with a global platform and the players will be surrounded by an Olympic environment. It's a win-win for everyone, but ultimately it won't change the sport.
No, it's not cricket that needs the Olympics. If you dig deeper, it turns out that India needs the Olympics. Cause? India's potential bid to host the 2036 Games, which will temporarily be held in Ahmedabad, the hometown of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Making cricket an Olympic sport is vital. Since 1980, India has won just two Olympic golds. Cricket is the only sport she competes in on the world stage; this is necessary to increase interest in the Games.
The Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority has appointed PriceWaterhouseCoopers to prepare a feasibility study on the infrastructure costs. The Narendra Modi Stadium is part of the complex built with the Olympic bid in mind and is intended for the opening ceremony. Architectural firm Populous has reportedly been awarded the contract to design the stadiums. Amit Shah, India's home minister and father of Board of Control for Cricket in India secretary Jay Shah, has taken the lead in reviewing plans for the bid, which is part of his party's manifesto, the BJP.
Thomas Bach, president The IOC recently said India has a «strong case» for hosting the Olympics and welcomed the bid. Notably, the Olympic Committee session will be held in Mumbai this weekend. This is the second session to be held in India and the first since 1983. The corruption allegations that plagued Delhi's 2010 Commonwealth Games will not derail its Olympic bid.< /p>
The IOC is looking for new markets, and India's booming economy and young, digitally savvy population is ideal for new sponsorship and commercial deals. The Modi government's hosting of the Olympics will be a powerful statement about India's place on the world stage.
For years, cricket has been apathetic about participating in the Olympics, and that reluctance has come largely from India and England. The BCCI wanted nothing to do with the Indian Olympic Committee. They were happy to play their own way and didn't want to lose their autonomy. Their players did not want to sign up to the Olympic doping regime, which requires athletes to indicate their location for random testing.
Both the England and Wales Cricket Board and the BCCI were concerned about the Olympics competing with bilateral cricket. The ECB knew this would interfere with their summer, but bilateral cricket had lost its relevance and administrators in England were now accustomed to saving their summers. They did it for the Hundred and they will also have to host the Twenty20 World Cup in June next summer. A week for the men and a week for the women for the 2028 Games is nothing compared to this.
But cricket only really started taking the Olympics seriously earlier this year when Jay Shah joined the Olympic team ICC application. team. His presence signaled the approval of the BCCI, as well as his father's influence with the Indian government.
Cricket is serious about dividing the United States, home to 4.8 million Indian expatriates. The launch of Major League Cricket backed by Indian money is just the beginning. The Los Angeles Olympics are a natural progression, but the real goal is Ahmedabad 2036. Imagine India and Pakistan vying for Olympic gold at the Modi Stadium — and the commercial opportunities that come with it — and you'll understand why the IOC has endorsed the sport. which is almost never played outside the country. small world of former British colonies.
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